B-17 Fortresses and B-24 Liberators under attack

The MK 108 Maschinenkanone 30 mm caliber autocannon manufactured by Rheinmetall-Borsig.
A requirement for a heavy aircraft weapon for use against the Allied heavy bombers. Requiring on average just four hits with high-explosive ammunition to bring down a B-17 heavy bomber and a single hit to down a fighter.
There were two main types of ammunition for the MK 108 to use, a 30 mm high-explosive self-destroying tracer ("M-Shell" or "Mine-Shell") and a 30 mm incendiary shell. The first type was designed to cause a maximum blast effect by combining a very thin shell casing with the maximum load of explosive.
Tests carried out at Rechlin (where most of the Luftwaffe aircraft and weapons tests were done) showed that with a "M-Shell" with 85 grains of explosive, five hits could destroy a B-17 or B-24 bomber. The second type of shell, the incendiary, was meant to be targeted at the fuel tanks of the enemy plane. Since some penetrating force was still needed to overcome the armor or airframe of the target, and not have the shell break up or explode upon contact, a hydrodynamic fuse was fitted so that the shell only exploded once it came into contact with liquid.

[@mailnoslihp95]

Thank God this footage has been seen 2 million times. I was getting worried that people just dont care about history anymore but it makes me very happy to know that this stuff isn't being forgotten

[@scottlarson1548]

This short video will not teach you much about history. It looks like a video game.

[@enno9431]

You mean when US took over Europe after 6 Mill. dead germans and 27 mill. dead russians in all WW2 0.4 mill dead US ? We do not forget. Neither germans nor russians.

[@ariankar98k]

​@@scottlarson1548videogames teached me most of what I know about history bruh

[@charles9571]

My grandfather was shot down over Bremen only three weeks into flying missions Oct. 1943. He was a navigator in B-17s. Most of the crew made it out except for the co-pilot. He spent pretty much the entire war as a POW until he was liberated. His first child was born when he was a POW. Even after that, he was still one of the nicest dudes I'll ever know.

[@enno9431]

Yeah, happy he is fine. But he was in the early US Invasion force then and now trying to control all of Europe and Russia. At least Russia retaliates the US CIA annection ( worth 5 bill. $ according to Vict. Nuland ) of Ukraine as a free country. I hope Europe stands up against your US Oligarchs !

[@brianhilgenkamp2413]

October 1943 was the worse time for US heavy bombers in WWII. Escort fighters still could not fly all the way with them. Today (10-14-2023) is the 80th anniversary of the Second Schweinfurt raid. 60 B-17s shot down over the target and another 17 landed so badly damaged they never flown again.

[@danielgallagher200]

My Uncle Joe Gallagher was a radio man and gunner on B17s and B24s with the 97th Bomb Group of the 15th Air Force stationed in Foggia, Italy. He flew 52 missions over enemy territory and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Never mentioned too many details or his medals. Only mentioned that several times his plane was severely damaged but they always made it back. He was amazed at how much damage the planes could take and the ability of the very young pilots and co pilots to fly them while shot up. We didn’t even find out about the DFC until he was in a nursing home and his son went through his things. Joe slipped the surly bonds of earth for his flight home in the last week of November this year. He was 99 years old and as nice a man as you will ever meet. May God grant you peace, Joe! Thanks for your extraordinary service.

[@silenciummortum2193]

Hear, Hear!!! May God accept his soul and grant him peace until the ages of ages.

[@tieroneactual2228]

In the old series “12 ‘O Clock High, the actor Paul Burke, who eventually replaced Robert Lansing as the Group Commander, his name on the series was Col. Joe Gallagher, but perhaps you were already aware of that. That series along with Rat Patrol & Combat still find it’s way into our DVD player quite often.

[@JoeyStarley]

and all for nothing

[@rickdunham4394]

My father was a navigator on a B-17 and was shot down in Feb. of 1943. They skipped the plane onto the beach in Holland. Stalag luft III where the Great Escape took place is where they were interred. Dad died at 63 years old. Very Ill all his life. Told Great War stories. My hero. Texas Bronco was the plane.

[@whiskywhippet]

One of my ( recently deceased ) customers was a waist gunner on a B17. Although RAF he was part of what was called a “mixed crew” with American officers and RAF gunners. His aircraft was hit and he suffered burns on one sortie. He remained terrified of fire for the rest of his life.

[@mdaley4390]

Husbands, fathers, brothers, uncles, cousins of someone flying those planes. God bless them all and thank you.

[@dianepracy2754]

@@datruth66392 WRONG!. American bombers took huge losses flying daytime missions. The Brits favoured night bombing because it reduced allied casualties even though it increased German civilian casualties through missed targets. The Americans refused to do the night bombings because they wanted to minimise the civilian body count at the cost of their own people. The targets themselves were those supporting the German war effort and while they may have been civilian (bearing factories etc) they were unfortunately necessary to stop the German war machine. Learn your history before insulting others and get your figures right. The millions of civilians killed were by the Nazis themselves, not Americans

[@Sean2002FU]

paul eisner ...no Paul , wrong again...you don't want us to bomb people, tell them to give up terrorism, and live like non animals.... Ok? Now fuck off,!

[@H43339]

@@datruth66392 your an idiot !! And Full Of S#!+. They were designed for Bombing and hitting the targets.

[@H43339]

@@dianepracy2754 Well said, people these days are so ignorant or intentionally mean, sad the way some in society are today. Bad parents or No Parents.

[@H43339]

@@Sean2002FU Bravo, well said, Germany started the Dam War, Both World Wars.

[@audreydenison9606]

Now in my 80s and still living in Peterborough I still remember so much of the brave boys stationed at Polebrook as early as 1943. Audrey

[@Unmedicated_Moments]

Got any stories?

[@slipnpitch1894]

She*

[@marcos14223]

she fucked all those murder crews

[@yakopro49]

@@marcos14223 how about go GOFUCKYOURSEL f

[@domcasmurro2417]

God bless you.

[@amerk7777]

I knew the 190 was going to be mentioned here. 190 was a total beast.

[@combatpig3435]

amerk7777 it’s like the Germans version of a p-51 D

[@patrickhorvath2684]

I read about a poster in the aircrew barracks that said ; " Who's afraid of the new Focke Wolfe?" All the aircrew had signed the poster. A visiting general added his name to the list of names..

[@brianhenley1732]

They called it the Butcher Bird

[@manchild3479]

@@patrickhorvath2684 best all round fighter of ww2....................

[@jeffmcgettigan1388]

BF-109. Not Me-109 as mentioned.

[@ConvairDart106]

Instead of arguing about it boys, why not acknowledge that war is hell, and vow to do all you can to stop it!

[@TonyEnglandUK]

@War Child Welcome to our planet, you have much to learn, War Child.

[@charlesbyrd1957]

Name me one instance of contested freedom ever won without war?

[@TonyEnglandUK]

@War Child Whoa, you WERE Brits at the time. Just rebellious ones.

[@drwlpwasright5132]

Marrowbones Watch documentary, Europa The Last Battle

[@Hume2012]

True. But a few wars are justified and even necessary and destroying German fascism and the Japanese Imperialist forces was very much justified. That is the lesson I take.

[@battennagasaki]

Powerful 30mm cannon..Soo many hits. Amazing!

[@g2macs]

When I see a ball turret with its guns down, it just brings a lump to my throat.

[@ihatewhitey6689]

KIA

[@Koko_Sam]

R.I.P hope it was fast.

[@aan4287-e8g]

Usually means the gunner exited the ball turret.

[@Nick-oh5dd]

What about the tail gunner???

[@ComdrStew]

@@Nick-oh5dd Tail gunners were usually the first to die.

[@robertoorsi5771]

Our ace WW2 Sgt Maj Luigi Gorrini shot down two B 17 and one P 38 in the same mission over Middle Italy with Macchi Castoldi MC 205 Veltro (Italian Greyhound). This airplane with Daimler Benz DB 605 and two Mouser 20 mm guns is visible on this channel at Museum of Science and Technique in Milan.

[@nomeacaso7679]

Quel damlier benz db 605 doveva essere un motore davvero potentissimo per sostenere il peso delle due enormi palle di acciaio di gorrini!

[@upendranathtrivedi8221]

Such a destructive firepower. Hats off to the German Engineers for developing such cannon.

[@chadbailey2019]

brave men on all sides

[@seanmccann8368]

Absolutely. Good and bad in every race.

[@dianepracy2754]

Sadly many were just boys.

[@COZMICTOM]

WHAT WAS SAD WAS SOME OF THE FIGHTER PILOTS WERE ORDERED TO RAM THE FORTRESSES..AND DID AND SOME WERE SUCCESSFUL ..THATS BRAVE AND CRAZY AT THE SAME TIME

[@williamkillingsworth2619]

COZMICTOM Curious where you heard these accounts, not doubting you, i want to know more about it.

[@AryaWibu]

@@williamkillingsworth2619 kzbin.info/www/bejne/r2i9g3amgNGte9k he's probably talking about this

[@x.y.z1315]

When I looked up at a B-17 making a pass over a crowd at a recent air show, it came as a shock to me that the plane barely appeared to have any speed at all. Then it dawned on me that, all of its 50 cal. machine guns and the vaunted flying box formation notwithstanding, you'd have to be damned lucky to survive a mission. R.I.P. lost B-17 crews.

[@manabouttongue]

Damn man, those tail gunners went through hell!

[@johnhorse5551]

My mate Burt was 89years when he passed used to walk our dog's together he was a tail gunner on the Lancaster Bombers "4 seconds when they came up behind you";night fighters used to shoot at the bomb bay,man 30mm hitting 2000lb bomb load never forgotten the greatest generation of our time

[@shelbyspringer9001]

Tiya's_ vloging the whole crew. The frontal attack by that 109 cost the pilot his life.

[@stuartwhelan233]

@@johnhorse5551 true hero's.. R.i.p Burt. From Carlisle

[@michaelmckinnon1591]

@@johnhorse5551 tailgunners often didn't make it through the War courtesy of so many of them being killed in action

[@CHaas-bn3xi]

The bravest man I've ever known was my father he was a young 20 years old and a pilot of B17s he flew 23 missions. He never really talked much about it but one story sticks in my mind, B17s where not pressurised so there for there maximum altitude was right at 20,000 he said at that altitude the Plains would be freezing cold in the gun turrets and the machine gunners hands would freeze to the handles other crew members would urinate on there hands to free them. Everytime those brave young men would climb into a B17 to drop bombs they never new if they would return home. One thing my father did struggle with is all the other B17 men that died in those plains and he was lucky enough to get through 23 missions. If I could ever say one thing to all the citizens that are lucky enough to live in this country is always be greatful for all the brave men and women that have served and died protecting our way of life in this great country called the United States of 🇺🇸 America.

[@abeYAHU]

Brave?

[@rosaamarillo2110]

Did the war end before he was able to complete his required 25 missions?

[@richardbaker430]

@Nogo Cologne Bull shit

[@richiecuzzz1]

@Nogo Cologne You're a pussy who obviously has no historical knowledge.

[@Oscar-df9sc]

Brave were the Germans who took off with 30-60 fighters to fight against hundreds of B 17 and escort fighters. They were greatly outnumbered and one with all this took off day by day to stop the massacre of their people.

[@Storlans]

amazing how angine can take so many hits from 20-30mm shells and still go on, just amazing

[@patrickhorvath2684]

Those air-cooled radial engines were very rugged. Read about a P-47 that had the top two cylinders cleaned off the block by a 20mm cannon shell. He flew back to base, windshield covered in oil...

[@sticktrik]

Yup! Fucking American’s would never show the full video clip when the bomber was dropping to the ground like a duck shot out of the air!!!!!

[@wtfhlostonparadise8278]

truthbtold there is plenty of videos of that. These gunner videos are short because the camera was setup to record only when the guns where fired.

[@kabbey30]

@Huawei is a criminal organization. I think you mean cylinder heads. There are plenty of stories where the B-17's came back with 2 engines in running order and the fuselage looked like swiss cheese. This was back when American ingenuity was on top of pretty much everything and things were built to last. The problem was that these factories, cars for instance, realized that making things durable they were missing out on selling replacement parts so they stopped making good solid products. I will never ever buy an American vehicle until Detroit gets their head out of their asses. Toyota's engines run so good and are so dependable that the bodies will rot off the chassis before the engines give out.

[@gregsiska8599]

@@sticktrik kzbin.info/www/bejne/lYSVo4qirsicl7M kzbin.info/www/bejne/mqSlqImMitRpmZo

[@vintagesurvivor]

Took balls to attack a bomber with 10+ .50's on it! No doubt. There are a lot of reasons why the Allies were victorious, but it was no doubt a deadly battle back and forth with excellent equipment and men on BOTH sides.

[@Cramblit]

Took balls to be in WWII in general imo.. Imagine being in that tin can called a B-17.. Sure you have a gun, but at the angles, speeds, etc. It was insanely hard to hit anything for anybody.. Yet here you are in the biggest target possible and nothing you can do but hope the bomber next to you gets targeted and not yours, and your friends in the other guns can hit something.. Because if either of those are a nope.. the chances of you returning are about 35%...

[@spencer5028]

No more brother wars

[@McLarenMercedes]

vintagesurvivor "Took balls to attack a bomber with 10+ .50's on it!" Trouble is the 20mm and 30mm autocannons on the German fighters had the range they could fire on bombers out of the range of their own .50 cal machine guns. That's not even mentioning their ability to create more damage if they hit and the fact it was way easier for a fighter to hit a big and slow bomber than a bomber to hit a fast maneuvering fighter which is a smaller target. You see the bombers flew straight and in formation and relied on their defense armament solely to limit the time the fighters could attack them at a closer range. It was in fact rare that the bombers managed to shoot down the fighters although they did damage them and force them to withdraw. Very few gunners on the bombers had actually managed to shoot down an enemy fighter by themselves. "There are a lot of reasons why the Allies were victorious" Just three important reasons: 1) Superior industrial output, 2) Way more natural resources 3) Economies that could sustain a long war of attrition. For instance the allies had five (!) times more aluminum than the axis. It goes without saying you can't manufacture airplanes from happy thoughts or paper.

[@jeremyohara5707]

@@McLarenMercedes regarding your comment on aliminium, the Brits designed and built a superb multi role aircraft made from wood, the de Haviland Mosquito.

[@GIDDY_UP_GO]

As a former US Marine (0341/Mortarman) I have a new appreciation for these Army Air Corps pilots and the nerves of steel and bravery that they displayed flying these planes in combat! I can only hope and pray for the future of America that we have the same type of pilots today and the future!

[@noydb2148]

Mark Santiago No. He's just lonely. His only interaction and experience with humans and emotions is making stupid comments. When Andy comes out, he will need our support.

[@omen828]

Marty Martin Ha ha. They deliberately targeted and killed over 500,000 German civilians.

[@fackrez11]

Isis is practically gone, and we haven't lost the war in afghanistan. We built up the afghans military and police force to a point where they could do the fighting for us before pulling out. We've learned our lesson from vietnam in how to deal with insurgent forces. Compare that to the soviets in afghanistan in the 80's....

[@Philip02K]

Marty Martin jarhead once a marine always a marine

[@Herberberber]

Even with the G's chin turret frontal 12 oclock high attacks were very deadly

[@spreadeagled5654]

It’s obvious that this was filmed during the early days in 1942-1943 when the long range P-51 Mustang escort fighters were not yet available. It was mass slaughter for the B-17s and B-24s flying on missions alone without the long range fighter escorts to protect them deep inside Germany and back. The P-47s lacked the long range and had to turn back early to England at the maximum distance of their range. That’s when the Luftwaffe fighters would attack. In late 1943 onwards, when the P-51s began escort missions, the bomber losses decreased. When the Germans noticed the P-51s over their airspace inside Germany, they knew they already lost the War. 🇺🇸 ✌️

[@debraperez7171]

Thanks for the info. As I was watching I kept saying "where are the Mustangs? ".

[@debraperez7171]

Yes I did know about the the Tuskegee fighter pilots. Not much but some. Some great director made a movie about them not too long ago. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see it.

[@debraperez7171]

I've seen some documentaries interviewing the pilots. God, they loved that plane.

[@ylismsa]

With a quick glance I noticed at least one B-17G, which takes it to late '43 at the earliest and likely in '44. The other B17s were mostly at least F models, which takes it to spring '42 at the earliest. Many of the bombers being badly beat up by fighters appeared to be stragglers that were separated from the formation and failed to RTB unnoticed. Stragglers found by fighters found themselves in a very bad situation and were most unlikely to survive. The escort fighters neither covered the separated bombers as their focus was the formation and keeping altitude. Losing altitude way below the formation would be bad for the escorts too and they would be unable to protect the formation.

[@ComdrStew]

@Robert Vongartzen Back in 1994 I use to fix shoes in Cincinnati, OH at a place called Shoe Fixers in Forest Fair Mall it was next to Biggs. This older black gentleman use to come in and sit down to rest sometimes and once I built up his new right shoe with crepe soles about two inches, he could not bend his right leg. I asked him what happened he said he flew P-51's in WW2 a German fighter's 20mm round came through the side and took off his kneecap. That was some tough Mothers back then he had to dogfight with no kneecap and he stayed with the escort, then had to fly all the way back with no kneecap. They fused his leg straight so he lost about two inches off of it. I wish I could remember his name.

[@Holztransistor]

Fw 190 A8/R8 (A8/R2 also had 30mm Mk 108 but no additional armor). A so-called Sturmbock. There also was the Fw 190 A8/R6 which had WGr. 21 rockets as armament.

[@someoneelse.2252]

I think what's often overlooked is that many if not most of the German air force comprised of young men, and that they were someone's son. They too, like the Allied fliers, were as courageous as hell, knowing every mission could well be their last. All of them were brave souls. (both sides).

[@Benzknees]

Pat TheHombre - Yes, but they were fighting for fascism against democracies, on the Western front, so cannot be regarded with the same level of sympathy.

[@hardwilli]

Fuck the germans

[@chrisburn7178]

I find these gun camera sequences incredibly eerie. It seems that in most cases there's no return fire, like they're ghost ships desperately trying to run. It's strange to think that each contained ten young men doing what they thought was best for their country and the world.

[@cgaccount3669]

Since they seem to be clips from German propaganda films they only show what they want the public to see. An easily shot down bomber with the crew inside not fighting back... likely because they're dead or injured. They're not gonna show footage of a German fighter getting raked by bullets

[@frankstein7631]

Robert Vongartzen Bullshit

[@frankstein7631]

mike parry More bullshit

[@folkestender2025]

@@cgaccount3669 Watch British and American propoganda films. They also show just triumphs and never defeats. When people see at home, how their sons die, that is not the way to push the war morale. In this case, both sides did not differ much. They received a letter soon enough that their son was a hero, but unfortunately dead. I know this from stories of my grandparents, who were always afraid when the postman rang the bell instead of just dropping a letter into the mailbox. They had 2 sons in war.

[@patico888]

@mike parry so true...

[@danielmasis8151]

Spottydog, your videos give me HAPPINESS, JOY, AWE, everything !!!! I can spend hours lost in your videos, thank you !!!

[@Jin-Ro]

2:41 Shows the FW190 A8 with the optional guy strapped to the front, armed with a Luger. Highly effective against bombers.

[@royhsieh4307]

they should make a tropical version of the fw including an umbrella to prevent the organic parts from overheating

[@nickkercheval2704]

I found this difficult to watch thinking of the young men in those planes. God bless their souls.

[@tommypetraglia4688]

I only lasted 2 minutes before I had to stop watching. I'm sorry I clicked on it at all

[@JohnSmith-ry8qj]

Today is a special day for Europe!

[@hillbillybeast4688]

Amen 🙏

[@traktori2888]

Well they came what does they expect

[@useryggfdcc]

And what about the receiving end of those bombs...the civilians, women, kids... I used to feel sorry for them...not anymore. Ex-airforce guy myself.

[@michaeldavis5775]

My dad was a B17 pilot. I'm so proud of him.

[@JoeyStarley]

They bombed non military targets for the most part.Killed a lot of civilians.Seeing the country as it is today they didn't accomplish much.

[@xMachinezZ]

My left ear enjoyed this.

[@frecmenta5114]

lol. mine too

[@mikepahmier9227]

The audio is almost 80 years old you jack wagon.

[@IXSuperRadGamerXI]

Your right brain did too and a small left portion too

[@vinikk77]

@@mikepahmier9227 wtf

[@steedjohn3546]

These were Brave young American Lads who were based in the UK 🇬🇧 at the time of the war. They all new they were on a one way trip without a fighter Escort until the formidable North American Mustang was built. This put the fear in all the Luftwaffe fighter pilots then, sorta even the odds up then. God Bless em all and thanks to all you guys from the UK 🇬🇧.

[@timearly5226]

Thank you for your kind rememberance. I know the UK stands among the finest. 🇬🇧🇺🇸

[@Jake_Peralta]

Sometimes when I watch those gun camera Videos I can't believe it really took place almost 80 years ago. Amazing and terryfying

[@gordon295]

A Big Thumps up to the brave Luftwaffe Fighter Pilots for defending the Fatherland !!

[@JoeyStarley]

Damn right!

[@LMTDDS]

Some of the approaches from the rear look so close you could probably have seen the terror on the tail gunner's face.

[@mikesmith4468]

That must have been nerve racking sitting in that bomber !

[@paulvonhindenburg4727]

great presentation. which suffered from bad mixing.

[@chrisj197438]

1:20 looks like a guy fell out from under it

[@red03mitsu]

I served for 22 years in the Air Force but I can’t imagine going up there in those planes. Bigger balls than me

[@chuckg2016]

Speechless. Balled up, torn up, & twisted inside. Speechless. (Signed) Viet Vet

[@jimkon5767]

Amazing, authentic footage! Thank you very much for posting.

[@MrTreeofWoe74]

That head-on attack in the beginning was intense. Watching those tracers ripping into the nose of the B-17 had me wincing. Imagine what the bomber crew was feeling being on the receiving end of it.

[@Acid4Blood]

It looks like the pilots took an explosive shell right on the face as you can see the whole cockpit lighting up with the explosion

[@ThaOlBoy]

Acid4Blood Yep. Pretty sure that enitre cockpit was utterly destroyed from those cannon rounds.

[@ThePaulv12]

Yeah it was horrible wasnt it?

[@zrty6512]

Lucid Dreams there's a gunner in the nose of the aircraft so that must of been the worst job on that plane

[@ericl2969]

Very horrible indeed. I once toured a B-17 and was struck by something few people seem to be aware of (I sure hadn't been). Even though we think of these planes as "big", they are very small by today's standards, no bigger than today's short-hop commuter planes. A person standing in the middle of the plane at the waist-gunners' position can reach out with both arms and easily touch both sides of the fuselage. In a space that narrow, any bullets taken directly end-wise would almost certainly hit some of the crew.

[@Exile_d]

2:30 Here there appears to be two turrets in the belly of the plane. I know the G model (mostly introduced in early 1944) had a chin turret, but this looks much bigger. Perhaps this is one of the YP-40 ones that had upgraded armament. This is an old video, but if anyone sees this and know what this is let me know.

[@Mistah_Random]

Love how the vibrations make it look like the tracers are squiggly lines lel

[@alexbowman7582]

On the 8th of February 1942 Reich Minister for Armaments Fritz Todt told Hitler with tears in his eyes that since Russia and the USA each produced 5 or 6 times the amount of bombers that Germany produced the war was now inevitably lost. He was leaving with Albert Speer on a plane later when Hitler persuaded Speer to stay saying he wanted to talk to him. Todt's plane mysteriously blew up whilst in the sky and Speer became the next Reich Minister.

[@captainpinky8307]

really? damn!

[@donogoobo9992]

FW190 (The Butcher Bird) called that for a reason.

[@ThatoneWW2lover]

2:13 that was a good shot even though the pilot was killed

[@zeus-mt7wx]

This video was awesome.

[@331SVTCobra]

I was horrified at all the dead tailgunners not firing back and continuing to be chopped up by cannon fire.

[@t.r.4496]

I have to wonder if my uncle is in any of these videos, he was a tail gunner and ball turret gunner in ww2, who made it home, I tear up reading the journals he kept on his flights, so many people shot down on both sides and no parachutes seen.

[@hoodoo2001]

A video like this tends to show a highly misleading version of the air war. After May 1944 While we of course did lose bombers and fighters (but not a high percentage) and sometimes the German fighters got through and brought home footage of victories which were publicized all out of proportion by a desperate Nazi propaganda machine, all in all it was the Germans who were losing high percentages of fighters in daylight combat, not the US who was carrying the main daylight load. After D-Day, the US Bomber losses dropped drastically while fighter losses increased due to ground attack duties. The Luftwaffe had become merely an annoyance to allied military leaders while the 20mm and 30mm Flak guns took a toll of low level attackers (but not unsustainably so and not contributing strategically to German operations). Adolf Galland, stated either during or after big week that the Germans were no longer able to replace pilot losses when trying to challenge the US for air superiority. Additionally, he chronically complained that no matter how many fighters the German industry repaired or replaced, he could never get the daylight fighter force over about 800-900, which was grossly inadequate to take on 2,000 bomber raids with escort. Prior to the war, a German mathematician had theorized that to carry on a successful bombing campaign to bring a country to its knees alone, it would require 200,000 aircraft with 10,000 replacements a month. Of course he was using as his reference the small rickety bombers and fighters of the early 1930's not the more effective machines of the 1940's. Even so, the US alone built over 275,000 aircraft. The Germans and Japanese built far fewer and were trying to subjugate many countries. When you take into account sorties the numbers get huge (on the allied side-German and Japanese sorties were tiny by comparison) and actually illustrate that the German mathematician was not as off as you would think as even the US and Brit effort still required ground forces to root out the Germans with the Soviets also in the ground game.

[@stevebrownrocks6376]

Good video, & good info on 30mm mk108 cannon damage.

[@kylecho2912]

0:30 feels so much like war thunder when you attack B17s head on Aim for the engines damn it

[@richmerowitz5610]

+Kyle Cho Aim for the cockpit.

[@runethief3041]

+Rich Merowitz i always get pilot sniped in war thunder

[@davidca96]

Those hits to the ball turret are brutal, that guy had no chance and was likely blown into pieces.

[@cgaccount3669]

At least he went out fighting and likely died quickly. The poor guys inside without a gun must have felt completely helpless

[@Brokkolesz]

1:21 Guy on the fuselage gunner position fell out?

[@royhsieh4307]

looks like some loose guts of spaghetti to me...

[@umeshsonkar4177]

He bailed out

[@PatrickNthedesert]

A lot of them guys didn’t wear chutes in the planes considered them to bulky to wear while moving about cramped quarters unless they were getting ready to bail out.....R.I.P. to them all brave,brave men

[@gengen4ev]

1 grain = 64.79891 milligrams ,the load must be measured in grams ... Tests carried out at Rechlin (where most of the Luftwaffe aircraft and weapons tests were done) showed that with a "M-Shell" with 85 grains of explosive, five hits could destroy a B-17 or B-24 bomber.

[@shiftyshamsk]

Like at sea you have time to think about dying going down. A fear of no earth beneath you to run and fight another day. A true nightmare. Watching this, is watching death. RIP

[@edgarosogobio8335]

RESPECT FOR ALL THE VETS! In every country they fought and many died

[@steffenmeier7204]

the sacrifice of the Luftwaffe men is not forgotten in Germany. After the Luftwaffe was finished in 1944 they bombed 50 cities in ruins and killed about 100.000 to 200.000 German unarmed civilians. Shame on them who did this to the people of a Middle Europe country who had a crazy government which did not stop the war just to stay for some months longer in power. You knew what you were doing as you knew in Japan and Vietnam.

[@jinktv645]

Attacking aircraft or targets from a plane is actually pretty hard and not like from games.

[@nssigmtrretired6661]

My uncle survived 30 of these missions as a nose gunner. I saw him on tv about a year ago getting to fly on a refurbished bomber. He said after about 72 years he kinda missed it.

[@royhsieh4307]

u can ask him to play war thunder but then thats like asking him to play on the opposite side as the gunner. hope he wouldnt hate it.

[@tune7333]

the slo - mo of the B17 being destroyed is a Bf110....its in actual film reel on here somewhere with its pilots name etc

[@bivideo7]

Not "QUACHITA" --- it's "OUACHITA" - named for mountains in Arkansas...

[@spottydog4477]

+Daniel Sullivan Wakeeta?

[@bivideo7]

Oh-watch-ee-tah

[@euphemist2721]

Daniel Sullivan it's pronounced Witch-eh-taw

[@rideonkc]

The Oauchita are an American Indian tribe. I'd imagine the mountains derived their names from the Indians. We have many towns with Indian names here in the Midwest. (Including Wichita)

[@russelledbetter1726]

Its pronounced Wash-i-taw. I live in Ouachita Parish here in Monroe, LA. We are also the home of Delta Airlines and Claire Chennault. We have a park and Museum here in his honor.

[@6milesup]

At 1:05 it shows a B-17 with its gear down, a sign of surrender. Yet he is still being fired upon.

[@TheWairarapaWildcat]

+6milesup no more likely the hydraulic lines to the undercarriage were severed which causes the wheels to flop out of their bays

[@OMaMaRMY]

Imagine how this looked in real life

[@spottydog4477]

g'day tangles,, i was trying to show your argument about the use of cannon on the allied bombers in a good light...... i'll go dig up the RAE infro brown covers in "Testing for Combat" and i'll put up a bit on allied escort fighters...

[@Grahamgusbull]

There were just too many of them....and they kept coming!

[@digger5521]

I was just thinking they probably said that about custers last stand when I say your last name, not related to sitting bull ?? :)

[@thethirdman225]

3:00 Major Heinz "Pritzl" Bär! Very interesting. Seen photos of him but never seen moving film.

[@jamesbranham7384]

Top scoring experten in the west. Hans joachim marseille may have been the most gifted but he did not survive the war; killed when bailing out of a malfunctioning brand new bf 109 F1

[@ALRIGHTYTHEN.]

Its amazing that any of the bomber crews came out unscathed with all those cannon shells going through it.

[@o9rgeronimo979]

Correct me if I'm wrong..but I believe the early versions did not have a tail Gunner..and we learned from our mistakes..I would like to have seen the look of surprise when the first me109 pulled up to the tail.

[@pup1008]

Who would have thought it but the Germans made some outstanding fighter aircraft. Although once in the air it was lethal to Allied aircraft I think there is a stat that the Germans suffered more losses in training with the 109 than they did in actual combat! Most of those were in takeoff & landing manoeuvres as the plane had a VERY narrow distance between the wheels which made it very unstable on the ground. Fact is most of the major fighters back in the day had issues - Mustang & Lightening - Torque problems, Spitfire - Fuel problems in negative G. I think the standout German plane aside from the 262, which although innovative had engine problems which in turn led to vulnerabilities on take off & landing, was the "Long Nosed" 190 - MAN! that was a bit of kit!

[@Rick2010100]

The 5 Stern BMW engine and the V12 Merc engine worked fine and reliable, but the Jet engine of the ME262 Jumo later had problems. The original Jumo Jet engine needed rare raw materials and alloys like Titan, wich were not available for mass production, so the life span and service time of the Jet engines had to be shortened drastically as they used weaker materials. The Mercedes V12 engines (Daimler-Benz DB 605) worked fine and and made 1.500 BHB. The BMW Radial engine could deliver 1.200 BHP without any kompressor. Later engines had a compressor for more power, esp. at higher altitude. But at this time, the Luftwaffe was still in the Jet turbine time age, and the turbo and compressor engines had no more a main focus.

[@pup1008]

Rick2010100 Your spot on with the alloy problem fot the Jumbo engine. You could only mine the required element in Turkey which by yhen was in British hands.

[@Rick2010100]

Rick2010100 The most rare elemetns and raw metrials came at that time from Sweden, but the funny case is that Germany itself had enaugh of them also in a verry high concentration. E.g. nearly all Russian nuclear weapons have been build from German Uranium, were large resources have been discovered in East Germny just in the last months of WW2. Even today this regions in East Germany have problems with a high natural degree of Uranium in their groundwater and state autorities advise pregnant woman in this regions not to use local tab water for drinking.

[@anka302]

John Dwyer Turkey was neutral up to the last months of the ww2 and non of the Turkish sources were in foreign hands

[@pup1008]

anka​ You are right about Turkey's neutrality & may well be right about accesses to required components but the information I was referencing stated that, cobalt I think it was, could only be obtained in Turkey & the Allies were restricting access to it. Ps. I apologise over my assertion that Turkey "fell into English hands." As you rightly say they were neutral until the closing months & were then on the side of the Allies - my mistake!

[@Surfercurtis]

Were the turret gunners just not very effective? How do the fighters get that close without getting blown out of the sky?

[@BooteyMasta]

I have the authentic 1942 manuals for these engines as well as the "Flight Manual" and "Erection Manual & Maintenance manuals " for the "B-17" if anyone needs some specific info on it :)

[@paulmanson253]

That is really something. How difficult would it be for you to do a pdf file or other of the common ebook setups.? Would love to be able to peruse the text and illustrations,a period text of a time when very young men got to do some very adult things. Cheers

[@BooteyMasta]

paul manson-I usually just send scanned pages a researcher needs. Too lazy to PDF nearly 1,000 pages. LOL!

[@stevenl2303]

+Mensa Melancholia Definitely hang onto those. They may be worth something in time if they are not already. Regardless, the meaning they have on their own is value enough. Super cool!

[@Oscar-df9sc]

Georg-peter eder was the biggest ace against b 17 and b 24 shot down 36 of these machines, a true bomber killer!

[@charlesbyrd1957]

It’s Miss Ouachita Pronounced.....wah she tah or wah she taw Named for Arkansas and northern Louisiana area Indian tribe Also mountain range in Arkansas and lakes And name of excellent small aluminum flat bottom fishing boats manufacturer

[@terrybates8626]

charlesbyrd1957 I scrolled down & saw how you corrected the pronunciation of Ouachita. We lived there for many years. Still have family & Friends there in Hotsprings👍😊

[@Kmag61]

Can't imagine what it's like on the inside of the B-17

[@mononciovisual]

miss ouachita .?..it was a chilean crew?

[@spottydog4477]

lol

[@thomasmcewen5493]

Mauro Vilchestein I think it is slang for Quit your bitching

[@s.sestric9929]

It's pronounced Watch-i-tah

[@OkFixer]

I believe your right....like o-wash-it-ta I think its some Indian tribe, and maybe they painted a Indian queen on it. I don't think the first letter is Q. I think its an O

[@s.sestric9929]

Ouachita refers to a Native tribe. From Wikipedia: "The Washita River, Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, and Washita County, Oklahoma, were also named for the tribe, as well as the town of Washita, Oklahoma. The name comes from the French spelling of the Caddo word wishita, meaning 'good hunting grounds.'" The Ouachita Mountains, River, and National Forest can be found in Arkansas and Oklahoma.

[@ahmadeid3005]

thank you for this good footage ... can you give me the source please?

[@DeltaSniperZRR]

1:01 How weak, this B-17 has it wheels down what means I can't fly anymore, so it has to crash land, and this German fighter pilot keeps firing... I'm not saying every German pilot was like this one but it's so weak and sad for the crew inside the B-17.

[@DeltaSniperZRR]

jens260876 With what facts do you want to proof that "so much" Allied fighter pilots shot down Germans from there parachutes? I know the Germans did, a US veteran saw it happen; kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqXMonyBaKx0hrcm30s

[@bakters]

I would do the same. I'm not sure if I would shoot parachuters, but I'm not dismissing the idea out of hand. Just think what bombers did to German cities. They burned women and children alive. BTW - I'm Polish. While Poles did not fly B17, there were many in a very similar situation. Anyway, Poles shot German parachuters. Blood for blood.

[@bakters]

jens260876 "A german fighter pilot never, never fired on an en enemy pilot who bailed out of his plane and going down hanging in his parachute" - This is not true. There was an episode of Dogfights where the Mustang pilot described an encounter when a German 109 shot parachuting bomber crews. I believed him. If not for other reasons, just because he said what he done to the guy. He systematically wounded the German plane until the guy bailed out, and then he unloaded on him. Not something you would be particularly proud of, so probably true.

[@mashman86751]

bakters i heard a story of this lightning pilot I believe who was shot down by 190s. He jumped out pulled the chute and they camp by acted as if they were going to shoot him but saluted instead he saluted back of course but I thought it was pretty cool that not all German fighter pilots shot chutes.

[@mashman86751]

mashman86751 came by*

[@AnthonyMaw]

It is doubtful that the German fighter gun cameras recorded sound, so the audio effects of the 30mm cannons demolishing B17s was probably dubbed or foleyed. Still pretty good though! Thanks.

[@MrKirby2367]

That footage at 2.38 where the german was firing into the bomber and wing etc, those shells must have been flying through the length of that B17. The ball gunner must have been toast ! Bloody Hell we don't know we're alive.

[@mandolinic]

The ball turret was partially armoured and quite a small target, so it wasn't quite as dangerous as is commonly believed. Mind you, it still needed a special type of nerve to get into it, and whether you'd get out if the bomber was going down is a frightening thought.

[@fanofCOH]

old post, but no doubt just 1 or 2 of those shells would have got the whole crew just about

[@jamesdixon2860]

That is some excellent gun camera footage

[@tryithere]

It took a lot of brave men to be bomber crews from either side.

[@marcos14223]

more like murder mens. bombing a city is just murdering children. no honor on that

[@marcos14223]

@@edwardwoodward8052 you are if u think there is something honorable in bombing a city, whats the dif with al qaeda then?

[@dominicanbikinibeauties6537]

@@edwardwoodward8052 I know, "we" the Germans started all that shit, but bomber crews always were cowards to me. Like snipers or firing squads. You cant compare real fighting soldiers to people sitting in a plane safely dropping bombs on women and children. And YES, I know Germans did that too besides other atrocities. But hey, everybody in the world knows that the Germans were the bad guys. We paid for it. With blood, land, money and last but not least honor.

[@K-Vale]

@@edwardwoodward8052 No. He is quite right. Fighting among foes in the air is brave shit. Nothing brave about bombing a city of civilians. You are sick if you believe there is. Nagasaki. Hiroshima. These are atrocities committed. History has already judged it so; just as most brave and wise soldiers/leaders so judged it then.

[@K-Vale]

​@@edwardwoodward8052 Your vision is myopic and based on television and the modern-day skreed of warmongering. Unnecessary killing of women and children was never called collateral damage until very recently. I suggest you stop playing video games; stop watching television, esp. the news, and do some heavy reading. It will be like flak to your brain, and after damaging it, will make it stronger and more like a mind... I wish you luck, soldier. It's war out there.

[@peteirie1075]

In the description, you mention a tracer round employed; i was always under the assumption that the tracer rounds' main objective was to let the pilot/gunner see where the rounds were going so he could adjust his nose/guns? just curious, great vid, thanks for posting.!

[@christophermathern6796]

Amazing stuff.

[@FuriousHistory]

2:33 Why this B-17 have two ball turrets?

[@larry4789]

Unmanned chin turret at the front of the plane facing forwards. Ball turret in the middle is manned.

[@331SVTCobra]

Most of those B17s were loners that had been separated from the squadron. Either the gunners are already wounded or, as often happened, the gunners panic and expend all their bullets while the fighter is at a distance, and are then defenseless.

[@dovidell]

some say that a minutes worth of .50 cal ammo was enough for the U.S.A.A.F gunners

[@deanwatkins4108]

Did I just see the front nose gunner fall out of the nose?

[@TheNutzandBoltz]

Hard to watch, even today.

[@davidfarmer2049]

This film brings it home to you a bit. If you came up against a good one with canon, you were in real trouble. You'd got a meeting with the ground pretty soon after.

[@leewoodfield219]

As a gunner on 20mm gatlin gun mounted on a self propelled anti aircraft system, I know the devastation it causes.

[@malcolmlewis5860]

Clearly heard is the sound effect added to the film taken on a camera without a microphone.

[@Tiggzg]

Brilliant series, thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank-you.

[@EvilSirJasper]

This footage is likely all from before '44 & the introduction of the long-range Mustang escorts you mention. As we all know, or should do, after that the game was up for the Luftwaffe as the daytime skies over Germany became increasingly dominated by the 8th army air force & scenes like this became a nostalgic thing of the past for the Luftwaffe, with bombers attacking targets with increasing impunity. and yes, even prior to that there is daytime film of B17 gunners shooting down fighters too.

[@adolfhitler1615]

yes- love it- brave men of the Luftwaffe!

[@talboters44]

I guess the children of these germans are now suffering the results of mass immigration GOOD LUCK

[@paddy280]

too late for luck germany is finish

[@talboters44]

I hope you are right.

[@alphaprawns]

Those Luftwaffe men were thrown to their deaths. The Luftwaffe categorically lost the war in the air to the RAF, USAF and Red Army Air Force, and good fucking riddance to the nazi bastards.

[@Dragon43ish]

your hero was a paper hanger and a lousy corporal shit head.

[@danielcurda3633]

My favorite part of this video is when the super cool shooty sound effects drown out the dude talking.

[@blueznjazz123]

Although these films make it look like the most dangerous place to be in a B17 was the tail gunner, I found some casualty statistics from the 8th Air force records that suggest that this was not the case. It turns out that the number of air crew killed during bombing missions was virtually the same for every location on the B17, except for the side-gunners & the navigator. In other words, the pilot, co-pilot, ball turret gunner, top turret gunner, bombardier, and tail gunner all faced virtually the same risk of being killed. Twice as many side gunners in B17s died during the war as the rest of the crew, and the navigator had a slightly lower risk than everyone else. It is possible that the side gunners had a greater risk of being killed, but there is another possibility. I have a hunch that the reason the casualty figures for all crew are so similar is because the vast majority of crew were killed at the same time, ie. when their B17 was destroyed in mid-air or crashed after being shot down. The number of times that only a portion of the crew was killed in the air or only a portion of the crew was able to bail out must have been much less than the 'all or nothing' scenario. Since there were two side gunners in a B17, it would make sense that the number of side gunners killed would be twice as high as other crewmen. So, based on the statistics I examined, regardless of your role on a B17 bomber, it was equally dangerous and an exceptionally frightening experience!

[@michelledixon3533]

blueznjazz123 I

[@desertdogmcgee4755]

blueznjazz123 ball turret Gunner was the most common fatality in B17s.... Many were trapped in ball turret after battle damage unable to get out if turret or raise it to land...

[@FilmMastersChannel]

blueznjazz123 I think the fact your flying in a tin cam with hard hitting bullets equals no where to hide. Even their flake armour was not capable of stopping 20mm shells.

[@lawrencequan1408]

blueznjazz12

[@mandolinic]

My understanding is that the positions for the waist gunners on a B17 were staggered so they didn't bump into each other when firing, but whilst they had armour plate in front of them, they had none behind. I wonder how many waist gunners were wounded by bullets passing through the side of the bomber and hitting them in the back...

[@Bubba-Fudd-bulletsmith]

Dude i love all your videos, thanks bro

[@bvogel111]

The commentator is drowning out the sound of the guns!

[@emilio4769]

Sound is added. Gun films were silent:)

[@schallrd1]

The courage of those men being a tail or ball turret gunner is incomprehensible.

[@LyndaWhite-ju1gj]

Thank God for the P-51 Mustang to give our guys fighter cover and a fighting chance to complete the mission and return back to base for another day.

[@moc6897]

Interesting film and qualified English infos to what is happening! Thanx!